Patents Examined by Jake Cook
  • Patent number: 11174931
    Abstract: A driving apparatus has a problem in that a tip end of an output shaft, which is inserted through a hollow space, is difficult to be fitted into the apparatus body during the maintenance. Therefore, a driving apparatus includes an input shaft with a hollow space formed therein that penetrates therethrough in the axial direction, a motor that rotates the input shaft, a reduction gear that receives the power of the motor from the input shaft, an output shaft inserted through the hollow space of the input shaft and adapted to rotate about the rotation axis with power output from the reduction gear, and a coupling connected to a tip end of the output shaft. A first bearing for supporting the output shaft is arranged, and a second bearing for supporting the output shaft is arranged in the hollow space between the input shaft and the output shaft.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 16, 2021
    Assignees: Daihen Corporation, Nikon Corporation
    Inventors: Nan Jiang, Hiroshi Nakagiri, Kota Hoshijima, Kenji Omata
  • Patent number: 11174662
    Abstract: A drive apparatus includes a sun gear, a ring gear, a carrier which supports planetary gears, a drive source which drives the ring gear as an input element, and fixing mechanism which fixes selectively one output element of the sun gear as a first output element and the carrier as a second output element so as not to rotate, and driving force is outputted from the other output element which is other than the one output element of the sun gear and the carrier fixed by the fixing mechanism.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 16, 2021
    Assignee: GECOM CORPORATION
    Inventor: Yoshiaki Yokota
  • Patent number: 11174924
    Abstract: An end deflector includes a main portion including a ball delivery path that delivers balls between a rolling path and a ball return path, a tongue portion that guides the balls from the rolling path to the ball delivery path, and a pair of protruding pieces, that extend in the circumferential direction of each nut body from either side of the tongue portion with respect to the axial direction and define a ball guide groove that extends between the ball delivery path and the rolling path in cooperation with an inner circumferential surface of a deflector holding recess formed in a nut body, the main portion has an outer circumferential surface which opposes an inner circumferential surface of the deflector holding recess in the radial direction, a front-side portion of the outer circumferential surface with respect to a direction of insertion into the deflector holding recess is offset inward in the radial direction, and at least a rear-side portion of the outer circumferential surface with respect to the dir
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 25, 2017
    Date of Patent: November 16, 2021
    Assignee: KURODA PRECISION INDUSTRIES LTD.
    Inventors: Ryo Kaibe, Hitoshi Hakogi, Yoshimi Iwasaki, Tatsuto Omori
  • Patent number: 11168770
    Abstract: A drive mechanism for adjusting a position of a vehicle closure, with respect to a vehicle body, is provided. The drive mechanism may include a linear drive and a telescoping arrangement. The linear drive may include a spindle and a spindle nut and the telescoping arrangement may be coupled to the spindle nut and include a pair of gears coupled to one another. As the spindle rotates, the pair of gears may rotate to extend and retract translating portions of the telescoping arrangement in a telescoping manner such that the position of the vehicle closure may be adjusted.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2021
    Assignee: Brose Fahrzeugteile GmbH & Co. Kommanditgesellschaft, Bamberg
    Inventors: Kim Taylor, Andrew Lakerdas, Mark Farrugia, Alwin Macht, Michael Kuiper
  • Patent number: 11168784
    Abstract: A vehicle shifter device for ensuring high safety by suppressing misoperation by a driver. The vehicle shifter device includes a shift lever and a lock plate. The shift lever has a cylindrical lever body, a rod movable in an axial direction in a cylinder of the lever body, and a first lock lever and a second lock lever connected to the rod. The first lock lever is substantially L-shaped in plan view. The lock plate has a first extension portion extending in an X-direction and a second extension portion, integrally formed with the first extension portion, that extends in a Y-direction. In addition, the lock plate has a plurality of concave parts. In the lock plate, the projection height of a convex part between the concave part and the concave part is larger than the projection height of a convex part between the concave part and the concave part.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2021
    Assignee: MAZDA MOTOR CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takenaga Yohsuke, Daiki Nakata, Toshihiro Matsuoka, Masayuki Tokumo
  • Patent number: 11167388
    Abstract: A gearhead for a handheld power tool for machining workpieces, having a housing in which an output that can be connected to a drive of a handheld power tool is accommodated, and also having a tool shaft to which a tool can be coupled, wherein a braking device that can be moved between a braking position and a release position and that acts upon the tool shaft is provided for braking of the tool shaft. A switching device is provided that can be moved between a first switching position, in which the tool shaft is connected to the output in a power transmitting manner and in which the braking device is transferred into the release position, and a second switching position, in which the tool shaft is decoupled from the output and in which the braking device is transferred into the braking position.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2021
    Assignee: C. & E. Fein GmbH
    Inventor: Wolfgang Duernegger
  • Patent number: 11167433
    Abstract: The present disclosure describes a sealing apparatus for a robot and an articulated robot utilizing the sealing apparatus. In one embodiment, the sealing apparatus includes a first enclosure and a second enclosure. The second enclosure may be rotatably connected to the first enclosure such that the first enclosure and the second enclosure cooperatively define a gap between the first enclosure and the second enclosure. The sealing apparatus may further include a seal disposed in the gap such that the seal and the second enclosure cooperatively define a chamber. The sealing apparatus also includes an elastomer disposed in the chamber. The elastomer may be compressed by the seal and the second enclosure to generate an elastic force that presses the seal against the first enclosure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 20, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 9, 2021
    Assignee: Flexiv Ltd.
    Inventors: Xuesen Li, Shiquan Wang
  • Patent number: 11161237
    Abstract: A robot sealing structure including a shaft end face of a reducer, an attachment surface of an arm member that is to be in surface contact with the shaft end face, a number of bolts that fix the shaft and the arm member to each other in a state in which the shaft end face and the attachment surface are in surface contact; a recessed flat portion that is provided in part of one of the shaft end face and the attachment surface, and a seal member that is disposed on the recessed flat portion, where the recessed flat portion is a portion recessed in a direction along the center axis line of the shaft, with respect to the shaft end face or the attachment surface, and the recessed flat portion is continuous over an entire circumference around the center axis line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2021
    Assignee: FANUC CORPORATION
    Inventor: Shizuo Harada
  • Patent number: 11161256
    Abstract: A robot gravity balancer includes: a tubular housing whose both ends in the direction of a longitudinal axis are closed by end plates having through-holes; a movable member housed inside the housing so as to be movable in the direction of the longitudinal axis; a compression spring disposed between the movable member and the end plate; and an elongated rod that is capable of being passed through the through-holes of both the end plates, and that is disposed in a state of having one end detachably mounted on the movable member and the other end protruding to the outside of the housing, regardless of which of the through-holes the rod is passed through. The robot gravity balancer is disposed between a first member and a second member of a robot, the second member being provided so as to be swingable around a predetermined swing axis relative to the first member.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 2, 2021
    Assignee: FANUC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Yoshihiro Tanno, Toshinori Ohashi
  • Patent number: 11148303
    Abstract: There is provided a continuum robot comprising a first end, a second end and an elongate body, a sensor arranged at the first end and a cooling jacket adjacent the sensor. The cooling jacket comprises a cavity containing a cooling medium for absorbing heat from the sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2020
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Inventor: Andrew D. Norton
  • Patent number: 11149846
    Abstract: In at least some implementations, a gear shift actuator assembly to cause gear changes in a vehicle transmission includes an electrically operated drive member, a drivetrain driven by the drive member and having a plurality of gears arranged in a plurality of stages to provide a torque increase and a direction change within the drivetrain and an output driven by the drivetrain for rotation to cause a gear change in the vehicle transmission. In some implementations, the torque increase from the motor to the output is between 150:1 and 300:1.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 18, 2017
    Date of Patent: October 19, 2021
    Assignee: DUS Operating Inc.
    Inventor: Jinseok Jeon
  • Patent number: 11131370
    Abstract: A controlling device may include an actuator for mechanically actuating a component. The actuator may be driven by an electric motor. The controlling device provides a return spring. In the case of a failure of the electric motor, the return spring brings about a shifting of the actuator into a starting position. The return spring may be mounted in the controlling device so that it prestresses the actuator into the starting position with a predetermined minimum restoring force.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2021
    Inventors: Eugen Makarow, Edgar Salfeld, Florian Wetzel
  • Patent number: 11130244
    Abstract: In order to prevent swiveling of unintended joint pieces and enhance positioning and motion reproducibility of a distal end portion, a bending mechanism includes: a plurality of joint pieces connected in series along the longitudinal axis; a plurality of elongated tension-transmissions that transmit tensions for individually driving the joint pieces; and at least one guide having guide channels that movably support the tension-transmissions in the longitudinal direction thereof and that guide the tension-transmissions along curved paths extending around the longitudinal axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 7, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2021
    Assignee: OLYMPUS CORPORATION
    Inventor: Shuya Jogasaki
  • Patent number: 11125314
    Abstract: A demister for a gearing system includes a main body shaped as a disk having an inner annular rim coupled to an outer annular rim through a first wall and a second wall opposite from the first wall. A central opening is defined by the inner annular rim and extends between and through the first wall and the second wall. The main body is configured to be rotated about a central longitudinal axis to create centrifugal forces that separate oil mist particles from air. At least one fluid passage extends radially between and through the inner annular rim and the outer annular rim. The fluid passage(s) includes a fluid inlet opening in the outer annular rim and a fluid outlet opening in the inner annular rim. The fluid inlet opening is configured to accept incoming air. The fluid outlet opening is configured to discharge filtered air.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2021
    Assignee: THE BOEING COMPANY
    Inventors: Mark Joseph Robuck, Patrick M. Ridgley
  • Patent number: 11125310
    Abstract: A kinematics system driven by an actuator comprises a cam configured to rotate about an axis of rotation thereof. A cam track formed in the cam extends circumferentially through more than 360 degrees of angular displacement relative to the axis of rotation of the cam. The kinematics system also comprises a follower having a pin slidably disposed in the cam track of the cam. The cam track extending circumferentially through more than 360 degrees of angular displacement relative to the axis of rotation of the cam establishes a minimized pressure angle formed between the pin of the follower and a surface of the cam track engaging the pin.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2021
    Assignee: HANON SYSTEMS
    Inventor: Jim Nolta
  • Patent number: 11128042
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present application provide an antenna adjustment apparatus. The antenna adjustment apparatus includes a first drive wheel, a first gear, a second drive wheel, a second gear, and multiple output gears. The first drive wheel is meshed with the first gear, the second drive wheel is meshed with the second gear, an axis of the second gear coincides with an axis of the first drive wheel, and the output gears are connected to the phase shifters. When the second drive wheel propels the second gear to rotate, the first gear revolves around the axis of the second gear, is selectively meshed with one of the output gears, and is driven by the first drive wheel to propel the output gear to rotate and drive the phase shifter connected to the output gear.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2021
    Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Fangqing Duan
  • Patent number: 11124223
    Abstract: A vehicle power steering assembly includes a housing, a ball nut configured to be operatively disposed in the housing and including an extension portion provided with a convex bearing surface, an insert supported on the housing and provided with a concave bearing surface. The concave bearing surface is complementary to the convex bearing surface. The convex and concave bearing surfaces are a plain bearing configured to provide sliding movement relative to each other. The sliding movement provides relative rotation between the convex and concave bearing surfaces in a first direction on the ball nut axis and a second direction on a rotation axis that is transverse to the ball nut axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2021
    Assignee: ZF Active Safety and Electronics US LLC
    Inventors: Brian A. Urbach, John F. Santori
  • Patent number: 11111988
    Abstract: A bearing screw transfer device which converts a rotational motion of a screw shaft into a linear motion by the medium of a bearing is disclosed. The bearing screw transfer device has a first driving bearing and a second bearing which run along a screw groove of a rotating screw shaft, thereby converting a rotational force of the screw shaft into a translational force of an operating plate disposed on an upper portion of the screw shaft, wherein a two-surface screw groove is formed on the screw shaft, and an outer ring of the first driving bearing runs in contact with one surface of the two-surface screw groove, and an outer ring of the second driving bearing runs in contact with the other surface of the screw groove.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2021
    Assignee: WINNER CO., LTD.
    Inventor: Cheun Bok Song
  • Patent number: 11112000
    Abstract: Provided are a lubricating system and a pumping unit including the lubricating system. In addition to the lubricating system, the pumping unit further includes a rack, a transmission wheel located in the rack, and a transmission conveying device cooperated with the transmission wheel. The lubricating system includes an oil pool and a roller lubrication device. A bottom of the transmission wheel is impregnated in the oil pool. The roller lubrication device is in rolling contact with the transmission conveying device. An oil return device is disposed above the oil pool and configured to collect splashing oil driven by the transmission conveying device. After the splashing oil is cleaned twice, the splashing oil flows back into the oil pool.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 7, 2021
    Assignee: Forland Services LLC
    Inventor: Delin Chen
  • Patent number: 11104011
    Abstract: A mechanical arm assembly is generally presented. The mechanical arm assembly comprises a plurality of joints including a first joint, one or more intermediate joints, and a terminal joint connected in consecutive series and each configured to rotate with respect to any respective adjacent joints. The first, intermediate, and terminal joints are configured with their base and top arranged at a given angle with respect to the normal plane of the joint, such as parallel to the normal plane or 22.5 degrees with respect to the normal plane. Rotation of the joints is controlled by control wires. The control wires may be routed internally through the joints or externally outside of the joints.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 13, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 31, 2021
    Inventor: Robert Chisena